Articles Archive - Page 79 of 156 - Pittsburgh Quarterly

So much of modern culture seems bent on eliminating humanity from life itself. In many instances, this is identified as progress. But is it? Consider the current attitude toward handwriting, i.e., cursive. In many of our schools there is no longer any emphasis on the handwritten word. When I asked my grandson recently if handwriting …

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Opinion

I’d Find You Again

by Sylvia Catello

There’s this line in a Lukas Nelson song that goes, “If I started over I’d find you again.” I have no sense of direction, so I hope this is possible for me, but salmon do it all the time. Fall is here, and this is the time when salmon make their run. Not like a …

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Birds

A Century of Protecting Birds

by David Liebmann

My great-grandfather Samuel Feins emigrated from the Old Country, in his case, Russia, in 1899. He came through Ellis Island and then quickly made his way to Massachusetts. Fifteen years later he was firmly established as the proprietor of the New Hat Frame Company of 55-63 Summer Street, Boston. He was a milliner, a hat …

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Homes

Some Enchanted Cottage

by Marylynn Uricchio

Tucked into a hidden corner of Squirrel Hill is a house that looks as if Cary Grant should step out of the front door, the star of a romantic comedy set in the Cotswolds. It oozes charm from every leaded window, and every window box. Built in 1925, it has a come hither look that …

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Nature

The Brush Hog: Thoughts on a Fall Field Cutting

by David Macpherson

Twice a year, in June and October, I cut the long grass and other species of plants, named derisively as weeds, in my fields. It’s a bit like cutting grass with a huge lawnmower. I use a Kubota tractor with a twin-bladed brush hog attached. The cutter is about eight feet wide. For most, no …

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Opinion

Spinning Out of Control

by Elizabeth Wiethorn

Working from home for the past year has provided me with a one-minute commute to my home office and easy access to my favorite meal replacement—potato chips and dip. One of these perks resulted in my favorite jeans shrinking considerably and the realization that it was time to again try a dreaded fitness class. I …

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Region

With the Local Newspaper in Decline, What is the Fate of Local Reporting?

by Neil Strebig

Local newspapers have struggled for more than a decade to secure a foothold in the digital era and stay in business. Dwindling revenues and flagging demand for print editions have led some southwestern Pennsylvania papers to close and others to downsize their newsrooms, affecting coverage of local news. To make matters worse, there doesn’t appear …

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Architecture & Neighborhoods

Pittsburgh at Twilight

by David Aschkenas

Some cities are known for spectacular sunsets. Photographer David Aschkenas finds that, in Pittsburgh, the most interesting light is just before sunrise. Experience Pittsburgh at twilight in this collection of intriguing photographs. [ngg src=”galleries” ids=”275″ display=”basic_thumbnail” thumbnail_crop=”0″] View more of David Aschkenas’s work at www.daschkenasphoto.com.

Creative Capital

How Many Heart Beats Do You Want?

by Greg Curtis

So there I was, at the end of April 2015, off all my prescription meds. (I still took a baby aspirin and a multivitamin, don’t ask me why.) I was feeling great and knew I needed to exercise, but knowing and doing are two very different things. Before my heart attack I had a very …

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Profiles

Ageless Wisdom: Abraham Twerski, 87

by Douglas Heuck

Try and find happiness in everything. And that’s not easy. There are a lot of things that cause you misery. Right now I’m disabled in a wheelchair. I’m dependent on other people for so many things. I don’t like being dependent on people. But I still try and find some happiness in that. I once …

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Arrivals

Cudd, Farmer, Schuler, Buford, Kraybill, Martin, Gunther

by PQ Staff

Ann E. Cudd is provost and senior vice chancellor of the University of Pittsburgh, supervising the academic and research operations of more than 700 full-time faculty and 7,000 students. A native of Gambier, Ohio, she comes to Pitt from Boston University where she served as an administrator and professor of philosophy for the past three …

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Health

The Powder of Death

by Nick Keppler

Marley Fisher walked away from several overdoses during her six years of opioid addiction. The batch that finally killed her left her unable to even stumble out of the Point State Park bathroom stall into which she ducked to shoot up. In April of 2017, Fisher, 28, accompanied a friend to buy heroin from a …

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Events

Pittsburgh Native, CNBC’s Epperson Raises Money, Awareness

by PQ Staff

CNBC Senior Personal Finance Correspondent Sharon Epperson reminded attendees of the Brain Aneurysm Foundation’s 12th Annual Research Grant Symposium to always remain “present, mindful, and grateful” in their daily lives. [ngg src=”galleries” ids=”274″ display=”basic_thumbnail” thumbnail_crop=”0″] Epperson, a brain aneurysm survivor, captivated a full house with her inspirational story of recovery, perseverance, and advocacy. She drew …

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Region

Austin’s Conundrum of Success

by Paul Scripko

Austin, Texas is one of a handful of cities in the world currently blessed in reputation—big enough to have almost all the cultural amenities of cities twice our size, yet small enough to be tops on any of those innumerable “livability” lists. A recent cover story in “The Economist” looks at the Silicon Valley and …

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Arts

Barebones’ “Lobby Hero” Combines Comedy with Tragedy to Stunning Effect

by Stuart Sheppard

Dichotomies in art usually succeed brilliantly or fail dreadfully. Bringing together disparate forms is inherently risky: it challenges the artist, but even more so, it challenges the audience. In the case of “Lobby Hero,” Kenneth Lonergan’s 2001 play about four people whose lives collide in a random apartment building lobby, barebones productions has dropped this …

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Regional News

Unemployment Holds Steady, Near Low Rate of the Year

by Julia Fraser

The Pittsburgh region’s unemployment rate in August remained at 4 percent for the second consecutive month, according to recently released data from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry. The August and July rates represent the second-lowest unemployment levels reported in the seven-county Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area this year and are only slightly higher than …

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Events

UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Gala Raises Millions for Cancer Research

by PQ Staff

The UPMC Hillman Cancer Center Gala 2018, “Hope Flourishes,” celebrated the advancements being made in cancer care and recognized those who support these efforts. [ngg src=”galleries” ids=”273″ display=”basic_thumbnail” thumbnail_crop=”0″] Nearly 900 of the region’s leaders and longtime UPMC Hillman supporters who attended are responsible for raising millions of dollars to support the scientists and clinicians …

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Events

Allegheny Health Network’s “A Night Under the Stars” Held On-Field at PNC Park

by PQ Staff

The Allegheny Health Network “A Night Under the Stars” Gala was held on Friday, September 28 at PNC Park, marking the ballpark’s third ever on-field private event. [ngg src=”galleries” ids=”272″ display=”basic_thumbnail” thumbnail_crop=”0″] The Network’s second annual gala included a cocktail reception, dinner, a light/pyrotechnic show and entertainment by The Elite Show Band. Emcee Bob Pompeani …

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Sports

Ageless Wisdom: Dick Groat, 87

by John Beale

Dick Groat, 87, shares his path to becoming a professional athlete, golf course operator and broadcaster. My family made me whatever I might be. I had great parents and two sisters that were school teachers and two brothers who were athletes at Pitt. I was a very fortunate person to have grown up, as the …

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Books

Terrance Hayes Tackles Current Life in “American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin”

by Fred Shaw

“Prismatic” is how the late poet Wanda Coleman once described her smart, resonant American sonnets in a 2002 radio interview with writer Paul Nelson. The impetus of her avant-garde style was to approach the old form in a new way, making it a more stimulating way to express anger and satire, allowing her to reach …

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Creative Capital

Who Says There’s Really “Prediabetes”?

by Greg Curtis

I want to launch this post with a disclaimer—don’t do what I did. On the other hand, the usual advice—consult with your physician—might be even worse, for the reasons I’ll get to. After my 2015 stress test (described in last week’s post) I had a very depressing follow-up call with my doc. “Your ejection fraction …

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Arts

Internationals I Have Known…

by Vicky A Clark

When the Carnegie International opens this fall, it may appear as if the world’s latest art elegantly touches down like an ethereal being whose time to visit us has come ‘round again. But if you knew it as I do, you would know that this periodic being is full of, shall we say, blemishes and …

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